CCTV footage shows crew members of the second flotilla that sailed from the Spanish port of Barcelona, carrying humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza, raise their arms as the vessel is said to be intercepted by the Israeli Army, at a location given as at sea off the coast of Greece, April 30, 2026, in this screengrab taken from a handout video. Global Sumud Flotilla\/Handout via REUTERS<\/p>\n
Israel\u00a0Intercepts Gaza Aid Ships in International Waters, Organizers Decry Move<\/p>\n
ATHENS, April 30 (Reuters)\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Israel\u00a0has intercepted aid ships bound for Gaza in international waters near Greece, flotilla organizers said on Thursday, decrying the move as an \u201cescalation of\u00a0Israel\u2019s impunity.\u201d<\/p>\n
The ships make up part of a\u00a0second Global Sumud flotilla\u00a0to try in recent months to break an\u00a0Israeli blockade by carrying humanitarian aid to Palestinians\u00a0in Gaza. They sailed from the Spanish port of Barcelona on April 12.<\/p>\n
The vessels were seized by\u00a0Israel\u00a0late on Wednesday in international waters off Greece\u2019s Peloponnese peninsula, which is hundreds of miles from Gaza, the flotilla\u2019s organizers said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is piracy,\u201d the group said in a statement. \u201cThis is the unlawful seizure of human beings on the open sea near Crete, an assertion that\u00a0Israel\u00a0can operate with total impunity, far beyond its own borders, with no consequences.\u201d<\/p>\n
No state had the right to claim, police, or occupy international waters, but\u00a0Israel\u00a0had done that, extending its control outward to occupy the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Europe, it added.<\/p>\n
Israel\u2019s foreign ministry on Thursday called the flotilla organizers \u201cprofessional provocateurs\u201d and said that its forces acted lawfully.<\/p>\n
\u201cDue to the large numbers of vessels participating in the flotilla and the risk of escalation, and the need to prevent the breach of a lawful blockade, an early action was required in accordance with international law.\u201d<\/p>\n
ISRAELI SOLDIERS BOARD SHIPS<\/p>\n
Footage released by the organizers showed\u00a0Israeli soldiers boarding a vessel and crew in life vests with their hands up. Crew members were then taken to\u00a0Israeli ships.<\/p>\n
Greek government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis confirmed that 55 vessels were sailing some 50 nautical miles off the Peloponnese towards Crete, shadowed by\u00a0Israeli warships and Greek coastguard vessels late on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Crew from 17 vessels were safe aboard\u00a0Israeli warships, he said, adding that Athens had not been notified of the\u00a0Israeli interception, which took place outside Greek jurisdiction.<\/p>\n
A live tracker of the flotilla showed some boats sailing near the southwestern coast of Crete.<\/p>\n
SECOND FLOTILLA TO BE INTERCEPTED<\/p>\n
Turkey denounced the interception as a clear violation of international law which jeopardized navigational safety, adding it would take action to support the flotilla.<\/p>\n
Last October\u00a0Israel\u2019s military\u00a0halted\u00a0a previous flotilla assembled by the same organization, arresting Swedish activist Greta Thunberg and more than 450 participants. That followed other seaborne attempts to reach blockaded Gaza.<\/p>\n
Israel, which controls all access to the Gaza Strip, denies withholding supplies for its 2 million residents.<\/p>\n
Yet Palestinians and international aid bodies say supplies reaching the territory are still insufficient, despite a ceasefire reached in October that included guarantees of increased aid.<\/p>\n